Trains in England

There are different train companies operating in England. For example, the route from London to Bristol (around an hour and a half) is served by GWR and South Western Railway, while the route from London to Norwich, which takes under two hours, is covered by Greater Anglia.

One of the most popular routes in England is from London to Manchester, which takes around 2 hours and 6 minutes on the fastest Avanti West Coast services. The first train leaves London Euston station at 05:10 and the last train departs at 22:03.

Heading out by train in England this summer? Discover top destinations, travel tips, money-saving ideas and much more in our summer train travel guide.

• Avanti West Coast, who provide services from London Euston to a number of major terminals, including Birmingham New Street, Manchester Piccadilly and Liverpool Lime Street
• Great Western Railway (GWR), who connect London to Cornwall, Dorset, Devon and other destinations
• East Midlands Railway, who connect London St Pancras to Derby, Leicester, Nottingham and other major cities 
• London North Eastern Railway (LNER), who run their services from the North East and Yorkshire to the East Coast and Scotland
• London Northwestern Railway, who connect the Midlands to the North West of England
• Chiltern Railways, who travel from London Marylebone to Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire, Warwickshire and the West Midlands
• CrossCountry, who run their services between the South West, the South Coast, the North East, Wales and Scotland
• Grand Central Railway, who connect London Kings Cross to the North East and Yorkshire
• c2c, who mainly connect London Liverpool and Fenchurch Street stations to Essex
• Great Northern, who connect London to the East of England

• Greater Anglia, who run their services between London, Essex, Suffolk, Norfolk and Cambridgeshire 
• Hull Trains, who connect London King's Cross to Hull, Brough, Selby, Howden and Stevenage
• Island Line, who mainly operate their services in the Isle of Wight
• South Western Railway, who run their services between London Waterloo and South West London
• Southeastern Railway, who connect central London to South East London, Kent and parts of East Sussex
• Southern, who travel between central London and South London, East and West Sussex, Hampshire, Kent and Surrey
• Thameslink, who run their services between Bedford and Brighton, passing through London, Luton Airport and other destinations
• Merseyrail, who travel between the main stations in Liverpool and the metropolitan boroughs of Merseyside
• Northern, who connect the main cities of Northern England
• TransPennine Express, who run their services between the major cities of Northern England and Scotland
• West Midlands Railway, who operate their services between London and the Midlands
• Lumo, the new operator running their services between London Kings Cross and Edinburgh via the East Coast Main Line.

To find out more about all the different train companies who keep all the wheels on track in all of Great Britain, visit our train companies page.

Sleeper trains

If you're a night owl or want to save some time by travelling by night, then a sleeper train could be just the ticket. Sleeper trains are usually equipped with beds, washbasins, towels and air-conditioning, and have several travel classes onboard depending on your budget and requirements.

One of the most popular sleeper trains in the UK is the Caledonian Sleeper, which runs an overnight service from Edinburgh to London, and leaves from Aberdeen and Inverness. To search for Caledonian Sleeper services, check out our Sleepers Search page. For more information, check out our Caledonian Sleeper page.

Another popular sleeper train is the Night Riviera, which run overnight services from London to Penzance (Cornwall) and vice versa. Visit our Night Riviera page for more details.

Image credit: Neil Clarke. Northbound Night Riviera service at Paddington Station in the morning.

Airport transfers

If you're arriving in England, chances are you're going to land at one of London's main airports, which include Heathrow, Gatwick, Stansted or City.

For example, you can get from Heathrow Airport to central London on a TfL Rail or Heathrow Express service – you'll get off at London Paddington station, from which you can easily reach your final destination. If you're landing at Gatwick Airport, you can take a Gatwick Express or a Southern train to London Victoria or a Thameslink train to London St Pancras. From Stansted Airport, you can take the Stansted Express and get off at London Liverpool Street station.

To see the full list of UK airports with train transfer services and to book online, check out our UK airports page.

On a budget? Travel by coach

If time isn't a factor, or you’re a penny pincher travelling on a budget, we can take you where you want to go by bus instead. There's an extensive bus and coach network in England which makes reaching the most remote and unique locations possible, and we’ve partnered with the UK’s largest bus/coach operator National Express to take you there.

Buses in the UK are usually cheaper than trains, but the journey time can be a little longer. As well as being an affordable option for travellers, most bus companies in the UK come equipped with all the modern onboard facilities that make bus journeys comfortable and hassle-free.

If you’re keen to explore your options, search for UK bus tickets here.